Does Pico Rivera teacher Gregory Salcido have the right to free speech? Of course he does: in an op-ed piece, on a street corner or even in a bar, although that might be a bit hazardous to his well-being. But he does not have the right to unleash a profanity-laced diatribe at a captive audience in his classroom.

It is not Salcido’s right to free speech that should be questioned, it is his ability to teach. A student’s sweatshirt bearing the Marine Corps emblem could have provided a teachable moment. Salcido could have opened an honest discussion about who enlists in an all-volunteer military. Studies have shown that enlisted members earn more, on average, than their civilian counterparts with comparable education and skills. Or that generous benefits can help veterans improve their lot in life. As a history teacher, he could have pointed out that enlisted ranks have often been filled by those with fewer economic opportunities. How the small army that won the West was made up of at least three regiments of African Americans and the remainder of largely Irish and German immigrants. He could have commented on how the military progressed from a segregated force to one that is more diversified, with more opportunities for minorities, than the larger society. Or he could have opened discussion about the nature of an all-volunteer force. How while a draft is not part of the American tradition, neither is a large standing military. When numbers were needed — the Civil War, World Wars I and II, the Cold War — we have always had a draft.

There are any number of military-related topics that could have been triggered by the sweatshirt. Instead, Salcido chose to display his ignorance.

Should he be fired? That is up to the school district. But at the very least he should be retrained, as he obviously does not know how to teach.

— John Glenn, West Covina

Dumbed-down America

Letter writer Philip A. Lefcourt (Jan. 28) illustrates my theory of the dumbing down of America. He says that Trump “collaborated with Russia.” This issue has been ongoing for 14 months, yet there is no evidence of contact by Trump with Russia involving the election. Where is the evidence of voter fraud that changed the outcome? Where is there proof of votes being bought and paid for that influenced the election?

There is none, because the whole collaboration issue has been manufactured by those who want Trump out. The evidence is that members of the Justice Department and the FBI were concerned that Clinton might lose the election and thereby obtained a warrant to wiretap Trump’s offices, a clear violation of election rules. He claims Trump has appointed people unsuited to serve the government, yet when you compare the people Obama appointed to office, this is where there is incompetence.

It’s true there is currently a shortage of affordable housing. But that has occurred under the current system, which is market-driven. What is really magical thinking is “allowing markets to work.” The markets are clearly not working, and that’s why we have a crisis of ever-increasing rents, often to drastic and sometimes disastrous levels.

Your own editorial states that in San Francisco, “most renters benefit” from rent control. That’s a lot of people, and many are elderly. Sounds like good policy to me. Other than San Francisco and a few other places, rent controls have hardly been tried, so there is little or no evidence they don’t work. Your editorial makes sweeping and unfounded generalizations that rent control will make matters worse. What is the evidence for this? Please provide direct, scientific evidence for your claims.

— John Grula, Pasadena

The Clippers trade

The worst news: Our beloved Blake Griffin traded by the Clippers. We thought he’d be with us until he retired. Is Clippers management taking their leads from politicians? Liars! What terrible loyalty. All for the almighty dollar. The fans have had the stuffing knocked out. Can anyone say Pistons? Guess we could try, since my husband and I were both born in Michigan.

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